It is with great nostalgia that I look at the school photograph from 1954 which hangs in my study in Williamsburg, Virginia. I remember some of the Masters; McCready, Smailes, Pringle, Rankin and of course Headmaster K. D. Robinson. And I can pick out school friends Dave Dobbing, Mike Taylor (M.A.H.), Gordon Rimmer and Pete Williams. I am happy when an electronic copy of the school newspaper pops up in my inbox and, from time to time, a name from the past will appear to remind me of the years 1952 to 1957.

I came from a poor family in Birkenhead, so paying full tuition for Birkenhead School was out of the question. Fortunately, I was top of my class at Cole Street Primary School (now closed), and obtained a free scholarship to the school. I am ever grateful for the solid grounding in the classics, languages and science that I received at Birkenhead School. This foundation carried me to a brief stint with the Liverpool City Treasury followed, after my emigration to the United States, to a fruitful 33-year career with A. T. & T.

How can I forget struggling to learn Shakespeare, Keats, Latin, calculus and history? How can I forget rugby at Noctorum Field, track and field, and ROTC? And I remember well the boxing match against my good friend Mike Taylor in which neither one of us wanted to hurt the other and our gym teacher grudgingly awarded a draw!

Where did the years go? My wife and I (both retired since 1998) continue to travel, enjoy friends and family and trust that good health will allow us more years to enjoy life.

Birkenhead School has gone through many changes since I was there, and my wife and I were fortunate to see some of this in person when we visited back in 2010. Head of School Edwin Gibbs, Headmaster John Clark and Old Birkonian Archivist Ms. Butterworth went out of their way to make us feel special as we toured buildings old and new and observed students engaged in life at school.

I know that many of my former classmates have passed on, but hope that some are still around to share thoughts of the past. My email is pwwebster@cox.net if anyone is inclined to trade messages.

Beati Mundo Corde!

Pete Webster

Class of 1957